Maroš Šefčovič wants to head the European Commission

Maroš Šefčovič, currently the vice-president of the European Commission for energy, wants to replace Jean Claude Juncker at the helm of the institution next year. "Once the procedural conditions for the nomination of the individual candidates will become clear, I will be able to say more on this topic. For the moment I can only confirm that I am interested in this candidacy, and I will do everything in my power to get enough support from the social-democratic parties in order to get involved in the candidacy process. My goal is to strengthen the cooperation between new and older member states ," said Šefčovič. The new European Commission will be formed after the European Parliament elections in May 2019. In order for Šefčovič to become the head of the commission, he will have to obtain the support of the European socialists, who will then need to achieve the most mandates in the European Parliament elections.

Social Democrats from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Bulgaria support Maroš Šefčovič's candidacy for the president of the European Commission. They agreed on this common stance at a meeting in Bratislava on Monday. The initiative for his nomination had come from the Czech side and he would be seeking support from the Social Democrats throughout the EU. "I fully support this nomination. Maroš Šefčovič belongs to a group of excellent politicians. He has shown his qualities and skills in all positions at European level. I will keep my fingers crossed for Šefčovič to defend this candidacy," said Peter Pellegrini, Slovak Prime Minister and vice-chairman of Smer, Slovakia's largest governing-coalition party.